


And I'll spin for you like your favorite records used to

by lousgotnocontrol



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Radio, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Pining, and lots of fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-15
Updated: 2015-04-15
Packaged: 2018-03-23 01:51:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,366
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3750478
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lousgotnocontrol/pseuds/lousgotnocontrol
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Uni AU where Louis signs up to be a radio intern and he gets a little more than he asked for.</p>
            </blockquote>





	And I'll spin for you like your favorite records used to

**Author's Note:**

  * For [clicheanna](https://archiveofourown.org/users/clicheanna/gifts).



> Note to broken_anna:
> 
> Here is your fic! I had such a good time writing it and you came up with some great prompts! Hope you like it!! :)
> 
> And a massive thank you to [Mary](http://foraweekand13days.tumblr.com/) for being the best beta ever!! ♡
> 
> Title is taken from Favorite Record by Fall Out Boy.

The first time Louis met Harry, it was a mess. He was half naked, in nothing but his pants and a flimsy tank top that barely covered his chest. His hair was sticking up in random places and he had the end of a toothbrush hanging out of his mouth. It was all a bit embarrassing, shredding his dignity to pieces, but at seven in the morning, he couldn’t bring himself to care. 

He was minding his own business in his dorm, brushing the morning breath out of his mouth, when something began furiously tapping on his front door. Louis would have taken a moment to make himself a bit more presentable before answering the door, but his desire to stop the persistent knocking was stronger.

“Just a sec!” he yelled around the toothbrush, quickly finishing up in the bathroom. “Jesus! Just wait!” Whoever it was outside was starting to get on Louis’ nerves. How dare they interrupt his morning routine? “What the fuck?” He asked before his brain could filter it out, swinging open the front door. 

On the other side of the threshold was a boy, standing a few inches taller than Louis. He had one arm pressing into the doorframe, the other dangling at his side. Whoever he was, looked much too chipper at this ungodly hour. 

“It sounds like something is dying in there. Would you mind turning down that shit?” He asked suddenly, eyebrows quirking up. The boy looked oddly familiar, something about his mannerism that sparked a memory in Louis’ mind. “Some people are actually trying to sleep, in case you didn’t notice.”

Louis raised an eyebrow immediately. Judging by his appearance, he had probably been awake anyway. His outfit was neatly arranged, consisting of a button up shirt with an abstract pattern, a pair of skintight jeans, and a set of boots that looked anything but comfortable. The lad’s hair was perfectly styled, dark brown curls framing his face. What uni student put that much effort into their appearance on a Monday morning? 

“You’re awake.” Louis replied smartly. “Besides, I don’t need to take advice from a woodpecker, thank you very much.” How dare he come into his room, complaining about his perfectly fine music taste? It was The Killers for Christ’s sake, who didn’t like The Killers? And he didn’t even have his shitty stereo turned up all the way, just enough to fill the vacancy in his dorm. 

Louis took another look at the boy, eyes glazing his body up and down. 

Harry. 

It was Harry Styles. The overenthusiastic psychology major that lived next door. Louis probably should have recognized him, considering that they were neighbors and all, but balancing a part time job and a full load of classes left little time to mingle. It deluded his social life to phone calls with his mum and rewatching cat videos on Friday nights.  
Harry let out an exasperated sigh, making a very obvious gesture of rolling his green eyes. “Just turn it down, okay? I didn’t come here to argue, really. I’m already running late. Just be mindful of it in the future. I wasn’t going to mention it, but this is the third time this week and I just-”

“Alright, I get it. You want your peace and quiet.” Louis mumbled, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. “No need to get your knickers in a twist.”

Louis knew he was being a dick. 

The guy had a legitimate reason to be complaining and they both knew it. But Louis was an asshole who stood his ground, even if it made him look like a fool.

For a moment, the pair stayed still, just exchanging glances. Louis leaned in against the wall, crossing his arms over his chest. Even if the lad had a horrible taste in music, Harry was attractive, in his own intriguing way. Louis decided he looked like Bambi, all long limbs and doe eyes. 

“Look,” he started, processing the apology in his mind, “I didn’t mean to wake you up or anything. I’ll be more mindful of it in the future.” Louis wasn’t one to back down from a fight, if you could even call this one, but he was already running late. As much as he wanted to live up to his reputation of being a ‘feisty hedgehog’, courtesy of his friend Niall, he just didn’t have the energy.

Harry smiled. “Great, I’ll leave you be then. See you around.” Lifting his hand in a small wave, he turned his back to the door. If Louis watched him walk down the hallway until his frame disappeared, then no one had to know. 

Louis could already tell that he had strong feelings toward him; he just didn’t know if they were good or bad yet.

***

By the time Louis got back to his room, he was over it. The stress of work and his classes was more than enough to get his mind off his encounter with Harry. He was nothing more than a blur, a hazy memory of green eyes and curly hair. 

Just as Louis was getting settled into bed, fluffing his pillow and pulling his duvet up to his chin, he heard a loud thump. At first he brushed it off, deeming it as one of his neighbors opening their door or stubbing their toe on a coffee table. Then there was another thump. And another. Followed by an outstretched moan. 

“You have got to be kidding me.” Louis mumbled, considering suffocating himself with a pillow. He did not have the energy to deal with this. The dorm room walls were paper-thin, useless against blocking out any sound. It was an unspoken rule between neighbors to keep their nighttime activities to themselves, and quiet. Louis tried to ignore the stream of moans leaking through his walls, he really did. But it kept going. And going. And going. 

After playing mock detective, he realized it was the one and only Harry Styles. What a hypocrite. Louis couldn’t believe it. First, he barged into his room, demanding that he turned down his ‘shitty music’. And now, only a few hours later, he was moaning up a storm, not even trying to muffle the sound. 

Ten agonizing minutes later, and Harry showing no signs of stopping, Louis dragged himself out of bed. He fumbled to put his glasses on, pushing them up the bridge of his nose. He really didn’t want to interrupt Harry’s wank session, or whatever it was he was up to, but Louis didn’t want his actions to go unnoticed. He quickly scribbled a witty message on a post it note, made his way to Harry’s dorm and slapped the stupid note on the front door. 

Louis felt quite proud of himself, staring at the yellow paper. He reread the message a few times in his head: “I’ll turn down my music when you turn down your sex life.” The paper was already curling at the edges and his handwriting was a proper mess, but he felt quite content. 

And thus, their rivalry was born. They were constantly at each other’s throats, never passing up an opportunity to bicker over petty little things. Every time Louis would pass Harry in the halls, he was sure to make a snide remark about his outfit choice, even if he did find his headbands endearing. Whenever Harry found Louis studying in the library, he made it his mission to distract him. It was all in good fun for the most part, an unspoken connection between the two. Louis was careful about never stepping over any boundaries. He wasn't very close with Harry to begin with, barely even considering him a friend. He was more of an acquaintance really. Their dynamic didn’t make much sense, but it worked. And that was good enough.

***

Louis was slightly terrified. He sat restlessly in his chair, fidgeting the entire time. He had about a million thoughts buzzing around in his head, not one revolving around the radio supervisor’s presentation. 

When he signed up to intern at his university’s radio station, he figured it would be a good way to kill some time. Play a few hours worth of music, talk occasionally to his nonexistent audience, and maybe get a free pair of headphones out of it. The whole thing seemed like a great idea at first, and Louis did need the extra units, so he went along with it. 

But now, sitting in the stuffy little studio next to his sworn enemy, Louis quickly decided this was his worst idea ever. Worse than the time he convinced Niall to go skinny-dipping in the university’s swimming pool. Worse than the time he thought he could join the football team after six years of not playing competitively. Definitely worse than the time he tried to bake a cake for sister’s birthday. 

He mindlessly watched the bubbly girl at the front of the room, trying desperately to keep up with what she was saying. She was very animated, talking with hand gestures and lively facial expressions. Louis was surprised she hadn’t passed out yet, talking a mile a minute and rarely stopping to breathe. 

“Any questions?” She asked, smiling brightly at Louis and the rest of the students. 

One of the girls sitting at the desk across from Louis rambled off something and he should have made the effort to pay attention, but he couldn’t get his mind off of the curly haired boy to his left. 

Of fucking course they ended up signing for the time slot. It was bad enough just seeing each other in the dorms and occasionally around campus, but now they were going to spend the whole semester together in the radio station. 

If Harry was anxious at all, Louis couldn’t tell. He sat in his chair with his posture slumped and legs crossed. He had a pen sticking out of his mouth, teeth digging in to the plastic cap. When Louis did the same thing, he looked like a nervous wreck. He didn’t understand how Harry could just sit there, being all calm and collected, while Louis was slowly loosing his sanity. 

He was so caught up in his thoughts that he barely even noticed Harry nudging his arm. 

“So what do you think?” Harry asked attentively.

“What?” It took a moment for Louis to come back to reality. “Sorry, I must have spaced out for a sec.” 

“Somehow that doesn’t surprise me.” The boy rolled his eyes before sitting back in his seat properly. “I asked when you wanted to meet up?” 

Louis pondered the thought for a second, thin eyebrows peaking up in confusion. “Why would we need to meet up?”

“To discuss our radio show.” He spoke slowly, hoping to spark some recognition in Louis’ mind. “Liz literally just went over this.” 

“Liz! Yes! We’re supposed to meet up to talk about the show.” Louis added, doing his best to shake the nerves out of his voice. 

“I just said that.” 

“It’s all a collaborative effort Harry, no need to fuss over the small details.” Louis noticed that everyone was already packing up. There were a few girls lingering at the door and the presenter – who apparently was named Liz – had already gone into another room. He really needed to work more on this whole ‘focusing’ thing. 

“There’s a new coffee shop that just opened. We could go there and work out the technicalities?” 

“Yeah, that’s fine.” Louis huffed, scribbling his cell number down on a scrap piece of paper. “Any time tomorrow afternoon works for me. Just text me the time and address.” 

Harry grabbed the slip of paper, shoving it into his jean pocket. “See you around then.”

***

“He just walks around like he’s the fucking king of England.” Louis groaned, tapping furiously at his Xbox controller. He watched intently as his character ran across the screen, stealing glances of Niall’s player at the other end of the virtual field. 

“I know, what a dick.” The Irishman agreed mindlessly. His face was contorted into a focused glare, bottom lip pulled in between his teeth and eyebrows furrowed together. 

Louis sat on the other side of the couch; body sprawled across the majority of it. Any other day, he would be all into the game, blue eyes strained and adrenaline pumping through his veins. FIFA was not something that he handled lightly. But his mind was elsewhere, all revolving around a certain curly haired boy. 

“He thinks it’s all up to him. There’s a reason why we’re cohosts, not a radio host and his underpaid assistant.” Louis groaned, strategically pressing the buttons as the football rolled to his character. He might have been exaggerating just a tad, but his friends didn’t have to know that. 

“You’re not even getting paid to begin with.” Zayn chimed in from his spot by the coffee table. He always came over to Louis’ dorm to study, he wasn’t sure why though. With Niall over half of the time, it wasn’t much of a quiet space. 

“That’s a fair point. I should talk to someone about that.” Louis made a mental note to look into that. 

“If anything, it’s less stress for you. I honestly don’t see why it’s such a big deal.” Zayn tried to reason.  
Louis’ eyes widened as he watched Niall’s character kick the football into the net. 

Niall – 3. Louis – 0. 

“GOAL!” The lad jumped out of his seat, waving the controller in the air like a madman. “Don’t think I won’t take advantage of your weakened state. This kind of win is a once in a lifetime opportunity.”

“Oh piss off.” Louis rolled his eyes, deciding to abandon the couch and the game altogether before he lost all of his dignity. “Do you want some leftover pizza?”

“You certainly know the way to a man’s heart.” Niall faked a swoon, clutching his chest and fanning himself with his hand. 

“Don’t you know it boo.” Louis blew him a kiss before venturing into his sad excuse of a kitchen. He dug out a couple paper plates and grabbed a few slices of last night’s dinner before returning to Niall’s side. “Zayn?”

“Sure, I could go for a slice.” 

When Louis returned, the two were settled in on his couch, eyes glued to the TV screen. Niall had turned on some documentary show about penguins and the Arctic. He didn’t even know he had an animal station. The camera panned to a particularly fluffily one. The little guy’s eyes were squinted shut as he shivered violently.

“That one looks like you.” Louis decided, comparing Niall to the fluffy creature as he handed over their plates. 

“How do I look like a fuzzy baby penguin? I’m terrifying.” He flashed a toothy grin and made a growling noise that sounded more like a dying animal. 

“You’re just proving my point.” 

“Fine, then you’re that one.” Niall pointed at the angry looking penguin at the other side of the screen. His fur was a fluffy mess, but his eyes were tiny, beady little things that looked like they could stare through your soul. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Louis insisted, voice muffled by the pizza. 

“This penguin has isolated himself from his colony.” The generic voice of the narrator filled the room. “It is most likely that he got into a fight with another over a mutual love interest or a rather large fish.”

Niall and Zayn cackled loudly, Niall clutching his stomach as he laughed. “That is definitely you.” 

Louis took another look at the moody penguin. “Maybe he’s just having a bad day. I’m sure he doesn’t appreciate having a camera shoved in his face 24/7. Can’t a bloody penguin have an off day without being classified as a piece of shit? What about the penguin justice? You would think they would be more understanding.”

“Or maybe he’s trying to disguise his painfully obvious crush on the radio intern with hatred. Or it could be the fish, you never know.” Zayn added. 

“What are you going on about?” 

“Oh come on Louis, you’re not even being subtle with Harry. Anyone in a ten-meter radius can see it.” Niall stated simply. 

Was he being that obvious? “You’re losing it Niall.” He stated, angrily taking another bite of pizza. A blush was tickling at the apples of his cheeks. 

“Whatever you say pouty penguin.” The knowing smile on Niall’s face was ridiculous. 

“I am not a pouty penguin.” Louis grumbled, quietly considering kicking the Irishman out.

“Well, I think the pouty penguin should just talk to the penguin with the curly hair.” Zayn suggested, taking a bite out of his slice. 

“Says the guy who spent months pining after a certain pink-haired lady.” Louis groaned, taking an angry bite of pizza. They were all a bunch of hypocrites really.

***

Louis took it upon himself to do a quick background check later that night. For all he knew, Harry could be a murderer, already plotting his attack against Louis. This little search wouldn’t hurt. It was clearly for professional reasons; these were all things that radio cohosts needed to know. 

It wasn’t like he had any better plans on this lovely Friday night. He was curled up his bed, balancing his laptop on his thighs. His fingers twitched, tapping against his leg to the beat of the music spilling out of his speakers. He half expected Harry to come barging in at any moment, demanding that he turned it down. That thought alone made his heart skip a beat. 

He slowly typed “Harry Styles” into Google’s search engine. Was this crossing some sort of line? Louis couldn’t tell. He hovered over the ‘enter’ key, index finger brushing over the smooth surface. Before he could talk himself out of it, he hit the button abruptly. Several links popped up immediately, most of them social media sites and a few blog posts. 

After a bit of digging, Louis came across Harry’s Facebook page that hadn’t been touched in months and an Instagram full of black and white pictures – all attached with an artsy captions that had nothing to do with the actual pictures. 

He was about to call it a night when he stumbled upon his Twitter. Harry’s icon was a picture of himself with a bulky camera covering up most of his face. It was unmistakably him though, and Louis hated that he could tell. His tweets consisted of cheesy song lyrics that were painfully overused and miscellaneous comments that didn’t make a bit of sense. He scrolled up to the top of the page, tired eyes focusing in on his most recent post.

 

“@Harry_Styles: Wishing that you would see me the same way I saw you. H.”

 

Louis immediately rolled his eyes. He was stuck working with a hopeless romantic then. And who even added a signature to a tweet? It was a status update, not a letter to the Queen of England. He suppressed the urge to respond with a snarky remark, but doing so would blow his cover. 

Harry was ridiculous. This whole thing was ridiculous. 

There was gnawing feeling in the pit of his stomach. He hadn’t felt like this in a long time, not since he swore off men and gave up on love several months ago. As much as Louis hated to admit, Harry was very attractive. He was exactly his type, filling out each and every requirement on Louis’ mental checklist. And he was a decent person. Sure, they bickered and got on each other’s nerves, but he genuinely was a good person. It would be so much easier if he were a dickhead. Then Louis could go back to hating his very existence and avoiding his presence at all costs. 

A little crush was the last thing Louis needed in his life. He could resist the charm of Harry Styles. He would not succumb to his endearing personality under any circumstances. If Louis kept this in mind, then maybe, just maybe, he would make it out alive.

***

The aura of the coffee shop engulfed Louis. The air was bitter with the smell of java chips. The baristas were busy rambling off orders and customers were cluttered around the seating area. Several couples were sat next to each other, talking vividly with bright smiles and friendly gestures. Others sat alone, tapping furiously at their laptops. 

Louis took a place in line, standing behind a woman in workout clothes and a man tapping away at his phone. He continued to scan the shop, hoping to find a familiar set of green eyes or a head of curly hair. 

With no luck, he proceeded with caution, ordering a simple cup of tea and claiming a table by the window. He prepped it to his liking, adding a splash of milk and passing on the sugar. 

And then he waited. And waited. And waited. 

Louis was beginning to get antsy, fidgeting in his seat from time to time. Only ten minutes had passed, but it was slowly driving him mad. Instead, he tried to focus on the little things like the acoustic soundtrack that echoed throughout the room and the couple sitting a few seats over who were bickering quite loudly. 

By the time he had his second cuppa balanced on the table, he felt a light tap on his shoulder. He turned his head slowly, meeting eyes with Harry. His features were especially rosy, a soft pink tickling the apples of his cheeks. “Sorry I’m a bit late, my English class ran over.”

“It’s fine mate,” Louis wanted to smack himself in his head when his voice cracked. 

Harry just smiled and bit back a laugh. “I’m going to go order and I’ll be back. Need anything else?” 

“I’m good.” He shook his head, trying his best to cover up his embarrassment. This wasn’t how their dynamic worked. Louis would tease, Harry would reciprocate. It was all an endless loop of banter. He wasn’t supposed to get flustered and Harry wasn’t supposed to be this nice. Louis didn’t know when the lines of their “friendship” began to blur.

He gulped down the thought with a sip of tea, wincing as the drink burned down his throat. A few minutes later, Harry reappeared, a paper coffee cup and a croissant in hand. He took his seat across from Louis, laying his pastry out on a folded napkin. The lad took his time, adjusting the position of his coffee and dusting off a few flakes of the buttery croissant. 

“What on earth are you doing?” Louis asked, finding his antics a bit amusing. 

Harry’s eyes were strained, heavily focusing on the task at hand. “For Instagram.” The tip of his tongue was poking out of his mouth as he evaluated his display. 

Louis instantly rolled his eyes. He would be the type. 

He pulled out his phone and took a few pictures. Once he was pleased with the shots, he turned to Louis, sticking his phone out to him. “Does this filter do it justice?” 

It was nothing special, just a black and white picture of the croissant sitting next to his cup of coffee. He didn’t know why Harry bothered, there were a thousand other pictures of a thousand different croissants out there, but his eyes were bright as he waited intently for a reply. 

“Yeah, it’s good.” Louis nodded. “Why all the pictures?” 

“Don’t know really, just something I like to do. I like to look at the simple things that most people ignore and capture them. Whether it’s my breakfast or a particular flower or even a trash can. Just whatever catches my eye.” Harry ripped a piece off the end of the pastry, darting his tongue out before taking a bite. Now that was a moment worth photographing in Louis’ opinion. 

“Very interesting outlook. Not much of a photographer myself. Being photogenic and skilled behind the camera are two completely different things.” 

“You’re a cheeky one, aren’t you?” He ripped off another piece, offering it to Louis. 

“I’m good, thanks.”

“More for me then.” He stated simply. “So, um, what kind of music do you listen to?” Harry asked tentatively, taking a sip of coffee. 

“I like a lot of pop-rock. The Killers are amazing and I’m a bit of a Green Day fan. And yourself?”

Harry paused, as if he was thinking of an adequate answer. Louis had to refrain from laughing. He just asked about his favorite band, not for the meaning of life. It shouldn’t have been such a difficult question for a radio intern of all people. “Lots of things.” He decided. 

“I’m going to need more than that Harold.” Louis bit back a sarcastic remark that could be deemed somewhat offensive. 

“It kind of just depends. I go through phases of liking different bands, so I don’t really have one that I absolutely love. Do you know what I mean?” 

“I guess so.” Louis answered even though he didn’t. The playlists on his phone were years old and he listened to the same bands for the past decade. “How do you want to go about picking our set lists?” Louis decided to take a different approach. “We could split each show in half. Or switch off at ten minute intervals.”

Harry brought his index finger up to his lip, making a show out of thinking this through. Louis was supposed to be the dramatic one, always blowing things out of proportion, shouting instead of speaking. He was not going to let a curly haired boy steal his thunder. “Well, we do have two shows each week. How about I take care of one show and you can do the other? That way our tastes don’t clash.”

Louis gripped his teacup with enough force to shatter it into a billion little chips. “What’s wrong with my music taste?” 

Harry took a sip out of his paper coffee cup. It was probably some sweet concoction, like a caramel latte or some sugary shit that barely even qualified as coffee. “It’s much different than mine. We need to keep up some sort of theme; otherwise we won’t have an audience. It’s all about aesthetic.”

“What do you know about aesthetic Mr. ‘I don’t have a favorite band’? Besides, no one even listens to the uni radio. We could play the SpongeBob theme song for the whole hour and no one would even know.”

“Well, at least it would be consistent.” A wild smirk played on his lips. It took every ounce of Louis’ self control not to smack the grin right off his face. 

The rest of their meeting went surprisingly well, just figuring out the specifics for their show and after a while they gradually fell into small talk. Harry talked about his family and Louis could tell that he loved them very much. His eyes grew wide when he mentioned his older sister, Gemma, and a soft smile grazed his lips when he brought up his mum. He even looked pleased when he talked about his new stepdad, Robin. Louis talked about his sisters and when he mentioned the little ones, Harry’s face lit up. They ended up having quite a bit in common. And the more they talked, the fonder Louis grew of him. 

When he returned to his dorm later that night, he may or may not have taken a look at Harry’s Instagram and he may or may not have saved the picture of the black and white croissant. 

***

Louis walked into the radio station slightly out of breath. He had rushed across half of the university campus and was still a few minutes late. If it weren’t for his stupid tendency to hit the snooze alarm, then he wouldn’t be in this predicament. His skateboard was carefully wedged under his right arm and his backpack was slung over his left shoulder. 

He kept his head hung low, hiding behind the bill of his snapback. Facing Harry was inevitable, but he didn’t want to get on any one else’s bad side because of his tardiness. A sigh of relief made its way passed his lips when he found that studio 2 was empty. At least he wasn’t the only late one. 

Louis settled down into one of the spiraling chairs, dumping his backpack on the ground and propping his skateboard up against a hard drive. He plugged his flash drive into one of the computers and waited patiently for his music to pop up.  
He stared back at his reflection in the computer monitor, taking a moment to adjust his beanie and smooth out his fringe. Dark circles framed his eyes, dimming his blue irises into a pale greyish color. He looked like a proper mess, but trying to manage a fully loaded uni schedule, a hectic job, and a semi pitiful social life could do that to a man. 

The monitor flashed to life as Louis scrolled through his music. It consisted of a few pop-punk playlists that got him through his rebellious teenage years, some EDM tracks, several up and coming bands that he discovered over the past few months, and a bunch of random songs that Lottie probably snuck into his music collection. 

Just as he was about to select a few tracks, the door swung open. None other than Harry Styles was standing in the doorway, cocky grin curling up on his lips and a paper coffee cup clutched in his hand. His hair looked extra curly today, each lock framing his face perfectly. And if he was closer, he probably would have smelt like minty toothpaste and strawberry shampoo, not that Louis had noticed before. 

“Mornin’ sunshine.” Louis said, sounding sarcastic more than anything else. He focused his eyes on the computer screen, desperately trying to ignore the loud beating in his chest. “Glad you decided to show up.” He laughed, joining Louis at the table. 

“Don’t know what you’re talking about.” 

“I’ve been here for almost half an hour, almost thought you weren’t going to come.” Louis noticed that all of Harry’s things were already there, pens and notebooks scattered across his side of the table. All of the radio controls were turned on, the “On Air” sign blinking at the front of the room. 

“Sorry about that.” He found himself apologizing, scratching the back of his neck nervously. “I was running a bit late, it won’t happen again.”  
Louis Tomlinson did not apologize. And certainly not over being late. He didn’t know where these words were coming from or why there was a pit of guilt eating at his stomach. 

“It’s fine. We’re even now.” Harry waved him off, pushing a few more buttons on the control panel. It all looked foreign to Louis, a sea of red and blue buttons and knobs and lights. He really should have paid more attention during the orientation. “I’ve got the next few minutes of music already lined up.”

“Thanks mate.” Harry seemed to be in a particularly good mood, something that Louis wasn’t used to seeing. “Just let me know what I can do.” 

The taller lad sipped at his coffee for a moment before shuffling through a stack of papers. “You can handle the intermissions, just talk for a bit. That certainly shouldn’t be a problem for you.” Harry shot him a knowing smirk. 

“I’m offended!” Louis gasped, clutching his chest and tugging on his shirt for dramatic effect. 

“Well, someone should put that big mouth of yours to work.” He smiled, hooking his headphones around his neck. He sunk back into his chair, propping his legs on top of the table. 

Louis’ eyebrows arched up. “Is that so?” As the song came to an end, Louis positioned the microphone at his mouth, lips brushing against the rough material. 

Two could play at this game. 

He flicked on one of the control keys, watching the little red light on the mic stand blink. “Good morning! And bless your soul if you’re spending it listening to this dreadful radio station. I’m Louis, and I’ll be your host. And I’m joined by my sidekick, the one and only Harry Styles. Contrary to popular belief, he isn’t all that stylish. Quite the misleading name if you ask me.” 

Harry let out an amused chuckle from the other side of the table. “You wound me.” He whispered. 

Louis took a look at the queued up set list, eyes glancing over the next few songs. “Up next, I can’t believe this Harry, is Call Me Maybe by Carly Rae Jepsen.” He couldn’t help but laugh as the beginning of the song filled the studio. 

“What, it’s catchy.” The lad said defensively. 

“Only if you want your ears to bleed.” 

They bickered back in forth for a while. Harry, standing by his obscure taste in music and insisting that Louis was the sidekick in their relationship. And Louis, taking every chance he could to mess with the boy, playfully arguing. Before he even realized it, their show time was running up, only a few more minutes until they were supposed to switch off with another set of hosts. 

“I guess we should get going.” Harry said as he shoved his belongings into a beat-up rucksack. “And if you’re late again, I might just tell Liz. That girl would skin you alive.” He warned, but there was a smile behind the threat. 

The memory of a bubbly blonde materialized in his head. “Definitely do not want to get on her bad side.” Louis laughed, gathering his belongings. “Won’t happen again.” 

They walked side by side as they exited the building, pausing slightly before going their separate ways. 

“Heading back to the dorms?” Louis asked, already dropping his skateboard to the pavement. 

“Nah, I’ve got an English class that’s starting in a bit. You?”

“Yeah,” he nodded. “I’ve got an essay that I really should be working on. Unfortunately, my mum didn’t send me here just to play music and party.”

“I’ll see you around then Lou.” Harry smiled, giving him a little wave. 

The nickname made Louis’s stomach jump. He gave the other boy a shy smile before pushing off the ground and letting his skateboard carry him home. 

***

The weeks passed by relatively quickly. Louis went from dreading his time at the radio station to counting the days until he would see Harry again. They talked constantly, exchanging silly snapchats and quick texts every chance they had. He couldn’t believe that there was a point when he hated Harry. He was such a constant thing in his life now, even if it had only been a month or two of being friends. 

They were now sitting in the radio station, answering listener questions on air. Harry decided to open up an advice column and they surprisingly had a nice turnout. Being the phycology major that he was, Harry’s responses were always thought through and insightful. Apparently being curled up in all those textbooks did actually pay off. 

“And our next question comes from an anonymous caller, you’re live!” Louis announced into the microphone.

“I was wondering if I could get some relationship advice.” The muffled voice of a girl became audible. “I’m falling for someone that I probably shouldn’t like in that way. They’re my best friend and I can’t handle loosing them.” Her voice was a bit shaky, exposing her nerves.

“It seems like you’re in a bit of a sticky situation.” Harry said. Louis could see the gears turning in his head. “I think you owe it to yourself and your friend to talk about these things you’re feeling. Bottling up your emotions is never a healthy option. I know this comes with a great risk, but do you think this friend of yours might have the same feelings?”

“I-I don’t know.” the girl stuttered. “Sometimes I think sh-they might, but I don’t know for sure.”

“It’s okay love, we’re not here to judge you.” Louis added.

“Okay,” she took a big breath. “Sometimes I think she’s flirting with me, but she’s kind of like that with everyone. And I’ve never felt this way about a, um, a girl. So this is all new territory.”

“I think you just have to be honest, even if this doesn’t end ideally. It’s better to act on your feelings and get over the heartbreak faster then wait it out and wonder what could have been.”

“Well said Harold.” Louis smiled, stealing a glimpse at the boy next to him. Seeing Harry in his natural habitat, helping people out and investing himself in others emotions, was liberating. He was the type of person who was too good for this world and even just being around him made you want to be a better person. “I agree completely. Maybe give her the opportunity to act on it if you don’t want to ask her straight up.”

“I think I’ll talk to her about it, maybe in a while, but thank you so much.”

“Communication is key!” Harry exclaimed, his face brightening up. “Thank you for calling and we wish you the best of luck!”

The two filtered through the rest of the questions, answering some ridiculous ones that Louis figured were prank calls and a few more general ones. By the time they finished up, their show time was almost up, only leaving a few more songs left. 

Harry was in charge of the set for the day, the majority of his songs being sappy ballads. Somehow, Louis didn’t mind. 

“You’re really good at that advice stuff, really.” Louis said as the chorus of a Kodaline song played through the speakers. 

“Really?” His eyes widened at that, a smile taking place on his lips. 

“Honestly, don’t know how you do it.”

“I’ve always loved helping people out, even if it’s something as simple as carrying their groceries. That’s how I got into this whole psychology thing.”

“Be careful Harry, or else I might expect you to start taking care of my groceries.” 

“Very funny Lou.” The nickname made Louis’ stomach twist. “You know that girl we talked to? Have you ever been in a situation like that?”

Right now actually. He wanted to say. Harry’s advice made it seem so easy, even if it wasn’t directed at him. “I guess so. Never had the courage to do anything about it though.” 

“If you could go back, would you address it differently?” Harry asked intently, staring at Louis with big green eyes. 

“Don’t think so. I’m not one to step outside my comfort zone.” Louis admitted, a blush tickling the apples of his cheeks. 

“If you keep an open mind, you might actually learn something about yourself.” Harry spoke calmly; pushing his bulky headphones down and placing them back down on the counter. 

Louis was slowly dying on the inside. This kind of feeling wasn’t supposed to be real. It was all made up for movie theatrics and sappy novels. The twitching in his fingertips and the pinching in his stomach offered nothing but more discomfort. His heart swelled as the other boy leaned in closer, steadily stitching together the space between them. 

“I don’t know about that.” Louis admitted. The sound of his heart pounding beneath his chest drowned out the music that flowed through the studio speakers. 

“If you never try, you’ll never know.” Harry’s hand was now resting on his kneecap. The sensation of it was overwhelming. Louis could feel his touch burning into his skin, even through a layer of clothing. He was pretty sure his cheeks were flushed a bright red.

Louis exhaled slowly; still trying to process what was going on. A few months ago, he would’ve thought he lost it; falling for a boy that he was supposed to hate. It was ridiculous really, the two were polar opposites.

“Dance with me?” Harry asked suddenly, dragging Louis out of his thoughts. 

The request startled him. “I don’t dance.” 

“Perfect. Neither do I.” The taller boy was already on his feet. He circled his hands around Louis’ wrists, pulling him upwards. 

His fingers dug into Louis’ skin, tattooing his fingerprints across the surface. “I don’t think this is a good idea Harry.” He said nervously, shifting his weight between his feet.

Louis felt vulnerable and he hated it. He rarely let people see this side of him, always covering it with a rough exterior. It was almost like he’d been stripped naked, standing out in the open for the world to see. Except he was perfectly clothed in a hoodie and jeans and Harry was the only one in the audience. 

“Trust me.” Harry whispered, reaching to place a hand on the small of Louis’ back. 

Wow. This is actually happening. Louis thought to himself. 

“Okay.” The word got caught in his throat, but all Harry did was smile. 

Louis brought up an arm to the boy’s head, gingerly taking hold of the back of his neck. He could feel his blood boiling over and if it wasn’t for Harry’s strong embrace, he probably would have been passed out on the floor. 

They began to sway in time with the music. It was a song that Louis recognized vaguely, a slow indie ballad that Harry played a few times before. The singer’s raspy voice filled the room, the acoustic guitar echoing in the empty air. 

“See, it’s not so bad.” Harry offered a shy smile. Louis had never seen him like this before. There was a sense of vulnerability to him, maybe not in the same way as Louis, but he seemed less guarded.

“I suppose it’s not.” Just as he said it, Louis ended up tripping over Harry’s feet, his worn out vans scraping against the other boy’s suede boots. “Shit,” he cursed, grinning around the word. 

As he stumbled forward, he just about closed the distance between them. Their chests were pressing firmly against each other. Louis swore he could feel Harry’s heartbeat flutter. He was in no better position, grasping onto the taller boy’s neck as if his life depended on it. 

Louis felt like he was drowning in all the right ways. He could barely breathe and with the way his heart was pounding, he probably should have been more concerned, but all he could focus on was the beautiful boy standing in front of him. Up close, Harry’s eyes were stunning. They were intriguing from afar, but up close was an entirely different story. They were full of life, green swirls surrounding his blown pupils, all framed by dark eyelashes. The skin stretching across his face looked like porcelain and the curve of his lips was absolutely sinful. 

Louis briefly wondered what he looked like, probably shocked above all things. Lips parted, cheeks tinted pink, eyes popping out of their sockets. 

“Harry,” He spoke his name slowly.

The taller boy nodded slowly, pulling Louis’ body in even closer. “Is this okay?”

It had been so long since he’d been held like this. He thought he could live without ever feeling like this, but standing in Harry’s arms was unlike anything he had ever experienced. 

For the first time in months, he smiled. He genuinely smiled. 

Louis always felt like paper crane; folded up by delicate fingers, creases wrinkling his exterior. Always appreciated from afar, but never up close. He was fragile and it didn’t take much for people to see that. As much as he hated his old boyfriends, their words still clung to Louis’ skin, like a tattoo staining his body. They said he was too much work. That he would never amount to anything special.  
But here was Harry. Gently unraveling the blue-eyed boy. Taking the time to smooth out his harsh.

“Yeah.” Louis let out a shallow breath of air that he didn’t realize he was holding in. With trembling fingers, he brought his hand up to caress Harry’s cheek. 

“So, um, can we kiss now?” Harry asked nervously, biting on his lower lip. 

Louis chuckled. “Oh, come here.” He pulled him in by the collar of his shirt, crashing their lips together and tangling himself in his embrace.


End file.
